A British survey takes a closer look

I'm not so convinced. I'm not saying that I'm not happy. Neither do I think that my stay-at-home-mom counterpart is living it up on bon-bons, a la Peg Bundy. But personally, I think there are some days when I am, some days when I'm not. This isn't a race. There isn't a shortage of happiness in this world, and the way people are splitting "The Motherhood" into two camps just pisses me off.

Yes, anti-feminists and conservatives will be pissed. But you know who else will be? Stay-at-home Moms. Try waking up and checking your blogrolls to find that the feminist blogosphere has embraced "scientific-proof" that your life isn't as happy as you thought it was five 5 minutes earlier.

I have always known that I was not made to be a SAHM. My maternity leave was great, but I was pretty bored. I did go out to Mommy & Me yoga classes, but didn't really socialize with the other moms. No sense in getting used to a play group when the gig is up in a few weeks. The day I went back to work was a great day for me. I didn't cry, I didn't worry too much about how my daughter was doing. I trusted my caregivers and dove right back into work.

I also know some really amazing SAHMs who love what they do. You can see it on their faces -- it's not that they're happy to be home "picking up socks," but they are happy to spend time watching their kids play and discovering things that I honestly miss out on.

I asked some mommy bloggers how they felt about being a stay-at-home-mom, and here's what one of them said:

"I have been working part time/freelance up until this past June when I went full time SAHM after my work contract just fell through. I LOVE IT!!!!! I have a huge social network and we meet up in the mornings, afternoons and evenings -- depending on the day. Sometimes I think about having another baby to prolong going back to work when they all start kindergarten. Ha! We are never home and always out doing fun things during times of the day/week when it's not crowded. And no, I'm not picking up socks all day. I do it at the end of the day and we play all day with friends (both mine and theirs).

I like to think that I live the best of both worlds, I call myself a stay at home work at home mom. Now when I say stay at home it does not mean I have to stay at home. I run a company that allows me to spend so much time with my daughter and work my buisness all at once. I am able to go to the park and just meet different stay at home moms who want to make an extra income but not have to slave and work 9-5. I have the time I need to play with my daughter keep my house organized and make sure I always have dinner ready. i love what I do and I love that I can watch my daughter grow all at the same time. So I guess as for me I am happy to do alittle bit of both.

From my experience with women who have become mothers before me and at this point in time too, I think that what most mothers need is a sense of identity apart from their kids, whether that is a part time or full time job or a hobby that keeps them occupied and allows them to maintain a semblence of self-worth, not endless, thankless tasks that their children will appreciate them for later.
Most of the SAHM's I know who get depressed don't make time for themselves and continually feel weighted by the burden that is domesticated life. There is no date night, no extracurricular activity. This is what breeds misery.
Working full-time has it's pitfalls as well. I have no support group - all of the SAHM's I know never even offer to watch my kid every once in a while so my husband, who works graveyard, can get a nap in! There is so much self-consumption in the SAHM's I know that it's difficult to find that support that one needs as a working mom. As a Christian who thinks it's totally okay to work, I think that sometimes I'm looked down upon for working while they've all sacrificed their finances and other lifestyles to stay at home, and it's alienated us somewhat from people who share even the same faith as us...
In all, it can really go both ways and is all a matter of individual circumstance. If we can balance our identities within our profession and our home life, I think we're good to go. It's when that balance fails that you find depression.

I LOVE the article, and I LOVE Mel´s point of view. When I was growing up, I used to think that I would be a SAHM, I even thought it would "liberate " me from the slavery of working (my work experience as a teenager-young adult was always stressful because of family and economical issues. Now, I discover that both my daughter and me find home (and park, and playdate) "too small" for us.... too small to explore, discover, socialize,... Fortunately, I found a job in a kindergarden and she can attend too, so we will be close but not on top of each other all day long while doing things we love . I think because of our personalities that´ll be great.
I just hope that all of us, women, who are learning every day more and more about this issue, will make an effort to create part time jobs and help other women friends to obtain and enjoy them within a balanced life. I for sure will try.

Although I haven't always been happy to be a WOHM, the unhappiness has usually surrounded something particular to my job at the time. I HAVE always known that I wasn't cut out for SAHM-hood, and I doubt I would have gone that route for any length of time.

I really like Elizabeth's comment - you tend to be happiest when you believe in what you're doing.

Personally, I've tried out most of these options - worked full time, worked part time, and currently on a sabbatical, which is allowing me to try out the staying home side. There is no right answer - frankly, even for me, the answer changes based on the role I'm in, what is going on with my kids, etc.

The part of your article that I loved the most was the very last sentence. For me, that is my primary issue with my return-to-work plan. There has got to be a way to be a successful contributor at work AND work more reasonable hours (40ish) so that I get my time with the kids.

I am new to Work It! Mom and am so glad to see this as one of the first articles I've read. I am so tired of this debate in our society. It is not a "one size fits all" kind of thing. Some mothers are much more fit to be SAHM and some mothers are much more fit to be working moms. I, personally, fit into the much better as a working mom category. Would I like to be able to cut back a bit on my hours? Sure. However, it keeps me sane to have a job to go to everyday, to get out of the house and get some adult time and some time where I can work to grow myself and meet new challenges. And, this in no way negates how I feel about my children and how I try to do what is best for them. Being a working mom is best for them in many ways as I turn into inpatient, cranky Mom when I'm not working outside the home and working on me a bit (albeit, that I'm working on me by working for someone else :) ). I think what this issue boils down to what is best for each individual family. There's no magic fix such as "working moms are happier" or "SAHM are happier".

I agree that it's impossible to simply split the SAHM and Working Moms into happy vs. not happy. There are too many variable to account for. Are you working in a job you love? Is your husband supportive/helpful? Are your kids healthy/happy/normal (i.e, moms of sick or disabled kids are going to be much more stressed than others)? Do you have a strong support network around you? All of those factors will determine how "happy" you are.